1. Emergency Diesel Generators
ACADs (08-006) Covered
Keywords
Emergency Diesel Generator, components, drawings.
Description
Supporting Material

2. NUET 230 EMERGENCY DIESEL GENERATORS
The purpose of this class is to familiarize students with Emergency Diesel Generators.
We will use various drawings of the EMERGENCY DIESEL GENERATORS at Fermi 2 as the primary tools to learn this system. 2 2 2 2

3. EMERGENCY DIESEL GENERATORS
TERMINAL OBJECTIVE
Students will understand the EMERGENCY DIESEL GENERATORS, its major components and flowpaths 3 3 3 3

4. EMERGENCY DIESEL GENERATORS
ENABLING OBJECTIVES
State the purpose of the EMERGENCY DIESEL GENERATORS, including its importance to nuclear safety.
Using a simplified diagram, identify and explain the purpose of the major components and equipment of the EMERGENCY DIESEL GENERATORS.
Describe the Maintenance Policies used for EDG maintenance 4 4 4 4

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Purposes of the EMERGENCY POWER (EAC) system
The purpose of the EDG is to provide a reliable on-site source of AC electrical power to maintain the ability to safely shutdown the reactor under all conditions, including a LOCA coincident with a Loss of Offsite Power (LOP) 5 5 5 5

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Basic system description:
The EDGs start automatically upon receipt of LOCA and/or LOOP signal and reach rated speed and voltage within 10 seconds. However, the EDGs breakers will not automatically close to the plants electrical bus network unless either a LOOP and/or loss of EDG bus voltage occurs. If a LOOP and/or loss of EDG bus voltage occur an automatic sequencer will load the EDGs in an orderly manner to avoid overloading and damaging the equipment. Only the loads necessary for safe shutdown are automatically loaded to the EDG.
The system consists of four EDG units separated into two independent divisions. Each division containing two EDGs supplies power to the essential loads of its respective bus. Either divisional pair is capable of supplying loads needed for safe shutdown of the reactor. Each EDG is supplied with its own supporting systems such that any single failure of an EDG supporting system will not affect the remaining EDGs. 6 6 6 6

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EDG Ventilation equipment:
Air Intake and Exhaust System - Supplies compressed air to the cylinders for combustion, and scavenging air to remove the exhaust gases from the previous cylinder stroke to the atmosphere
Flowpath
Air is drawn from the outside through a intake filter and silencer via the compressor side of the turbocharger.
Major Equipment:
Intake Air Filter - The dry filter removes objects from the intake air stream to prevent damage to the turbocharger and blower.
Intake Silencer - Reduces the noise caused by the flow of the intake air.
Turbocharger - The turbocharger pressurizes the inlet of the main blower to increasing engine efficiency. 12 12 12 12

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Diesel engines run at higher compression pressure than gasoline engines. Where the highest compression for most high performance gasoline engines is close to 200 psi, diesel runs almost 3 times that pressure. As a consequence, more heat is generated putting extra demands on the engine cooling system. Study shows diesel engines usually fail 50% more on cooling related problems because it cannot stand prolong overheating. This is why the cooling system is a high maintenance issue.
Unlike the gas engines, diesel engine has no electrical ignition parts like plugs, wires and moving part like distributor rotor which is subject to wear. These parts have a limited life and have to be changed on regular basis. 25 25 25 25

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Since diesel engines use a lot of air, greater attention is paid to the engine air filtration. Operators closely monitor air filter differential pressure and ensure filter cleaning / replacement is performed when needed. Cooling this air is also critical especially because the engine is turbocharged. High end diesel engines are fitted with after-coolers to cool the air from turbo charger. 26 26 26 26

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To prevent engine cylinder block scoring, avoid prolonged idle operation of diesel engines.
The EDGs will typically be loaded within 10 minutes or less of a test start. 27 27 27 27

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Remarks by Jeffrey S. Merrifield, Commissioner U. S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission – July 24, 2006
On August 14, 2003, I was the Acting Chairman on what I thought was going to be just another routine day at the NRC. I had a series of scheduled meetings that day, including a briefing on grid reliability, where the staff discussed the trends in loss of offsite power events at nuclear power plants. The staff informed me that the number of these events was decreasing, which was encouraging. They also mentioned, however, that the duration of individual events was tending to be longer.
Around 4:00 p.m. that afternoon, Bill Travers, the EDO at that time, came into my office and informed me that the staff was assembling in our Operations Center in response to the automatic shutdown of several nuclear plants in the Northeast and Midwest. At that time, we did not know whether it was caused by multiple operational events or, perhaps by a coordinated act of terrorism. 28 28 28 28

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As information continued to pour in the rest of the afternoon and into the evening hours, we came to learn that nine nuclear power plants in the U.S., as well as 11 in Canada, and a host of coal-fired power plants had been disconnected from the grid because of electrical instabilities, resulting in the blackout of major portions of the Northeast and Midwest in the U.S. and parts of Canada. In fact, virtually every power plant east of the Mississippi experienced voltage swings of variable amplitude, though plants further from the Northeast corridor saw only minor voltage perturbations.
By the next morning, after a long night at the Ops Center, we were only beginning to understand the magnitude of the blackout. I participated in several conference calls, including calls with the White House Situation Room, to discuss the causes of the event with the staff of the National Security Council as well as various Cabinet members. 29 29 29 29

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As you all know, after a nuclear power plant shuts down, it cannot just be restarted at the flip of a switch. Components in several systems must be realigned, those systems must be walked down to confirm their readiness, and the reactor operators must go through a checklist before pulling control rods to restart the nuclear reaction. It typically takes between eight and 24 hours for a reactor to restart after it trips offline. In addition, after a station blackout event, the transmission line operators must also ensure the grid is ready before the plant can close its generator output breaker and resume supplying power to the grid. There are a number of steps required to restore electrical power once the grid has gone down. That being said, most of the nuclear power plants were restarted within a few days and the grid returned to normal. 30 30 30 30

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So, what caused the event? We would eventually find that poor maintenance of transmission lines including tree trimming, lack of sensor and relay repair or replacement, poor maintenance of control room alarms, poor communications between load dispatchers and power plant operators, and a lack of understanding of transmission system interdependencies were all major contributors to the domino effect that resulted in plant after plant tripping off line because of the collapse of the electrical grid.
This event was truly a wake-up call for the North American transmission system operators as well as electricity generating companies 31 31 31 31

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WHY DOES NRC CARE ABOUT GRID STABILITY?
Nuclear power reactors must be cooled continuously, even when shut down. The numerous pumps and valves in the reactor cooling systems therefore must have access to electrical power at all times, even if the normal power supply from the grid is degraded or completely lost.
As a regulator, we want to minimize the time a nuclear power plant is subjected to a complete loss of offsite power, otherwise known as Station Blackout. Even though plants are designed with emergency diesel generators to supply power to pumps and valves that keep the reactor cool when normal power is lost, we do not like to challenge those diesel generators any more than is absolutely necessary.
The NRC was concerned about grid reliability long before the 2003 blackout event. 32 32 32 32

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On August 12, 1999, while the Callaway plant (in Missouri) was offline in a maintenance outage, the plant saw the offsite power supply voltage fall below minimum requirements for a 12-hour period. The voltage drop they observed was caused by peak levels of electrical loading and the transport of large amounts of power on the grid adjacent to Callaway. The licensee noted that the deregulated wholesale power market contributed to conditions where higher grid power flows were likely to occur in the area near Callaway. Alliant Energy had to spend ten's of millions of dollars to install new transformers with automatic tap changers to keep voltage above minimum requirements, and capacitor banks to improve the reactive power (volt-amps reactive, or VARs) factor in the Callaway switchyard. 33 33 33 33

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As a result of deregulation, many electric utilities were split into electric generating companies and transmission and distribution companies. Thus, nuclear power plants now must rely on outside entities to maintain the switchyard voltage within acceptable limits. Over time, some transmission companies have become less sensitive to the potential impacts that grid voltage can have on nuclear plant operations. A big part of our risk-informed regulatory strategy depends on plants having access to reliable offsite power. We assume that there will be very few times when a plant will be subjected to a total loss of offsite power, and when such condition exists it will be for a relatively short period of time (hours or days rather than weeks). Our strategy of allowing more on-line maintenance to be performed on certain important safety equipment such as the emergency diesel generators makes sense as long as the risk of a plant trip remains very low during the period of time that equipment is out of service. This philosophy relies on the fact that a total loss of offsite power is a rare occurrence that will be corrected in a short period of time.
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Engine Construction Cylinder Block - A "shock qualified," precision-welded steel block designed for structural rigidity and a design life exceeding 40 years. Dry block construction eliminates leakage and extends frame life. Large access openings at five levels in the engine improve maintenance. Turbocharging - High-efficiency turbocharging and pulse manifolding improves cylinder scavenging, thereby improving efficiency and lowering emissions. Optional Turbo-Blower Series design provides fast-starting and high-load acceptance capability, ideal for combination emergency stand-by and peak shaving applications. 35 35 35 35

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Engine Construction Cylinder Liners - Two pistons inside the cylinder liner form the combustion space, eliminating cylinder heads, valves, and associated hardware. Compared to other engine designs, Opposed Piston engines have less than half the moving parts. Pistons, Bearings, and Connecting Rods - Upper and lower piston assemblies may be removed from the lower crankcase, simplifying maintenance procedures. Connecting rods are forged from high-tensile-strength alloy steel. Due to the Opposed Piston's two-stroke cycle design and conservative operating speed (900 and 1000 rpm), aluminum alloy main and rod bearing life is extended. 36 36 36 36

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In a nutshell, a synchroscope is a device used in AC electrical power systems that indicates the degree to which two sources of power (power systems, generators, bus ties, etc.) are synchronized with each other. Synchroscopes measure and display the differences in frequency (speed) and time phase between the two power sources. This photo shows two sources in synch, each with matched voltages, in this case a 13,800 volt main bus circuit and a generator. 37 37 37 37

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Concerning the start up of a US *60HZ AC generator (*60HZ= 3600rpm); if the generator is turning at a lower frequency than the circuit that it is to be connected to, the synchroscope indicator will spin continually on the slow side, in a counterclockwise direction, until the speed of the generator is increased. The slower the speed, the faster the indicator will spin and the brighter the indicating lights, on either side of the scope, will illuminate. If the generator is running on the fast side of the synchroscope, the indicator will spin continually in the clockwise direction, indicating that the generator speed must be decreased. Ideally the station operator adjusts the generator speed (frequency) until the indicator reaches the '12 oclock' point, showing that it is running at precisely the same frequency as the circuit it is being connected to. With this, and matching voltages on both sides, the generator circuit breaker is closed and the generator is placed in service. 38 38 38 38

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EDG Governor
Electric
Actuator 47 47 47 47

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EDG
Centrifugal
Governor 48 48 48 48

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50. EMERGENCY DIESEL GENERATORS
TERMINAL OBJECTIVE
Students will understand the EMERGENCY DIESEL GENERATORS, its major components and flowpaths 50 50 50 50

51. EMERGENCY DIESEL GENERATORS
ENABLING OBJECTIVES
State the purpose of the EMERGENCY DIESEL GENERATORS, including its importance to nuclear safety.
Using a simplified diagram, identify and explain the purpose of the major components and equipment of the EMERGENCY DIESEL GENERATORS.
Describe the Maintenance Policies used for EDG maintenance 51 51 51 51